Final man sentenced in 2009 hit-and-run murder in Abbotsford

An Abbotsford man has been sentenced to a 21-year prison term for his role in a 2009 hit-and-run murder that killed Kulwinder Gill, 42.

Gurpreet Atwal, 32, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder. He had originally been charged with first-degree murder in Gill’s death.

After Atwal receives credit for time already served in pre-trial custody, he has another 15 years and 10 months left of his sentence.

Atwal is the fourth and final person to be sentenced in the case.

Kulwinder had been out for a walk with her husband, Iqbal Gill, on April 27, 2009, when she was struck by a pickup truck – driven by Atwal – in the rural area of Townshipline and Bell roads, east of Highway 11, in Abbotsford.

Responding officers were flagged down by her husband, who led them to a water-filled ditch, where Kulwinder had been thrown by the impact.

A suspect vehicle with signs of damage was seized by police on acreage several blocks away.

The incident was initially believed to be an accidental hit-and-run collision, but police soon began investigating it as a suspicious death.

Gill, Atwal and two other men – Sukhpal Johal and Jaspreet Sohi – were charged in April 2013.

Sohi, 33, of Surrey pleaded guilty in October 2015 to a charge of being an accessory to murder after the fact and was sentenced to time served plus one day in jail. A first-degree murder charge was stayed.

Johal, 32, of Surrey pleaded guilty in June 2016, also to a conspiracy charge, and received a 10-year sentence. After he was give double credit for time already served, he was left with three and a half years in prison.

Gill, 55, pleaded guilty in October 2017 to conspiracy to commit murder and received a 10-year sentence, after being granted seven years credit for time served.